Our Lord Jesus Christ – Simply True

Jesus as Leader and Saviour

What do we have in mind when we confess that Jesus Christ is Lord[i]. What do we mean by saying he is the Christ, and that he is our Saviour? These are the claims Peter makes for Christ when the church is born.

These claims are basic to our faith. They are also basic to God because it’s his way of fulfilling his plan for our world. They tell us that Jesus alone can secure our life and future.

But in a world that scorns any authority but its own, what do these statements mean to us personally? You probably feel as I do, that the distain of the world for anything unseen can seep into our own souls and dim the joy that is appropriate to us having such a great Lord.

The answer of course, is to let the word of our Lord Jesus Christ have full play in our minds and affections—and in our Christian communities.[ii] And I’m trusting that some simple articles about the authority of Jesus will be some help along the way.

The early chapters of Acts spell out the church’s early experience of Christ as the risen Lord and we can learn much from them.

God has demonstrated that Jesus is Lord, and Christ, by raising him from the dead. These are the two points Peter makes on Pentecost day. But there is another phrase he uses a little later, he is Leader and Saviour, and I’ll begin there.

Peter uses this phrase after he and the other apostles have been arrested. He is responding to authorities who oppose their preaching. But they must obey God rather than man. God has raised Jesus from the dead and seated him in heaven as Leader and Saviour.[iii]

Peter has also used the word meaning Leader, when speaking to people in the Jerusalem temple, and after healing a lame beggar. But there it is translated as Author.[iv] Israel has killed no less than the Author of life.

Here is leadership unlike anything humans can do. We can only arrange and provide for people as they are. We can’t make them different. But Jesus is the Author of life. We were dead to God. But through Christ, we are alive to God and ready to live for him.

The disciples have been introduced to this leadership of Jesus by being with him physically. They have seen him dealing with human need. They have concluded that only he can bring them to God. And they know they can’t go to anyone else.

But now, the mighty events of Christ’s death and resurrection have happened. And the disciples have discovered the shallowness of their relationship with Jesus.

And yet, this resurrected Jesus has carried straight on. He’s picked them up from their failures and taught them to live by his grace. He’s taught them, over several weeks, about the kingdom he is going to establish and administer. And before he’s taken to heaven, he affirms that ‘All authority has been given to me in heaven and in earth’.

Jesus now exercises that authority, leading his church from heaven. He’s no longer visible but he’s still in charge. Jesus has told the disciples that it will be better for them when he goes because he will then send the Holy Spirit to them.[v] And, of course, it is better for us all that the authority of Jesus is being exercised, not from earth but from heaven—by the Holy Spirit being among us.

The apostles wait until the Spirit comes. And come he does!

The Holy Spirit, who has previously spoken only to prophets, now speaks through some 120 people, simultaneously[vi]—and in a variety of languages. Jesus has acted. He is in heaven, but all of them know he’s in charge.

They are enabled to speak about God’s mighty works.[vii] And then, Peter explains what these mighty works are.

There’s the mighty works God did through ‘this Jesus’ while he was on earth.[viii] But these did not establish his authority. We—represented by those there at the time—killed him.

But Jesus has done exactly what has been needed. He’s done what his Father wanted. He’s loved us, and laid down his life for us. This is the mightiest deed that has ever been done.

But the mighty deed that Peter must speak about is God raising Jesus from the dead. This is not just a message about the authority of Jesus. It’s the good news we’ve all needed to hear.

Jesus is not only Leader. He is Saviour.

Notice how much attention Peter gives to King David’s anticipation that death will be overcome.[ix] The great work God is about with us human beings isn’t meant to finish with a funeral!

However, apart from this Saviour, death hangs over all of us. It’s like a shroud we wear prematurely.[x] It affects our approach to everything we do. It keeps us trapped.[xi] We try to make ’heaven on earth’ for ourselves.[xii] And it’s not just that we die that matters to us. Underneath all our protests, we know we’ll get what we deserve.[xiii] We share the same fault as Adam, and the same fate.[xiv]

This shapes our attitude to God and his purposes. We resent his final control over our destiny. We’re trapped in resentment and hostility.

But no longer. Jesus has taken our fault as his own, and suffered our fate—in our place. That’s the love he has for us.

And this man, this Saviour, is alive again—alive to his Father God. And in him, so are we! So, if we’re trusting in him, death no longer has the final say about our identity, or destiny. We know God and know we already have life that is eternal.

And then, there’s another strand to this. Think of the dead weight failure produces in us. Think of the remorse we feel for lost opportunities. Think of Peter and the other apostles. None of them has been the disciple they thought they were.

So, how glad Peter must be to announce the forgiveness of sins![xv] He is not a good man correcting other people who need to be good. He is just one sinner telling other sinners what Christ has done with our sins and with their result.

Neither death or sin has the final say about our life, or future. Forgiveness, and eternal life, now now announced to us in Jesus name.

We remember that the thief who died on a cross next to Jesus asked to be ‘remembered’ when Jesus came into his kingdom—or authority. Now, on Pentecost day, thousands are lining up to be included. ‘Lord, remember me too!’

Clearly, what we really need is not a strong man to represent our interests, or resources enough to secure our future. We have needed, and now we have, a Leader and Saviour who acts from above, who acts truly, who does what will change the future—or, as we say, make history.

We need God! And Jesus brings us to him—clean, unashamed and ready to share in his agenda. We’re not helpless, hopeless victims. We’re sons and daughters of God.

Here is a Leader and Saviour to love and to follow, to trust and to delight in!

Next time, we’ll look at Jesus as the Christ, and after that, as Lord, and finally, as Son of God.

[i] Acts 2:36; Phil. 2:11

[ii] Col. 3:16

[iii] Acts 5:27-31

[iv] Acts 3:15. Archegos can be translated as author or leader.

[v] Jesus mentions this three times—in John 14:16; 15:26; 16:7

[vi] Acts 1:15; 2:1-3

[vii] Acts 2:11

[viii] Acts 2:22

[ix] Acts 2:25-31

[x] Isa. 25:6-9

[xi] Heb. 2:14-15

[xii] Luke 12:19; 1 Cor. 15:22

[xiii] Heb. 9:27

[xiv] Gen. 2:17; 3:19

[xv] Acts 2:38-40

Jesus Christ—the King we need

What do we have in mind when we think of Jesus our Saviour—now seated beside God in heaven? We are familiar with his days spent among us on earth and these are important for us to know. But what about now?

Peter has called him our Leader and Saviour. But on Pentecost day, when many gather and hear about the wonderful works of God, Peter says that he is Israel’s long awaited Messiah, or Christ.

The words ‘Messiah’ or Christ’ simply mean someone anointed by God to act and speak for him—like priests or kings in Israel. But the words (one is Hebrew, the other is Greek) have become widely used to refer to the person God has promised to send—a great king to lead his people truly and powerfully.

Knowing that Jesus is this promised Christ is not new to the disciples. John the Baptist has pointed to it. Peter has confessed it personally. The disciples have expected him to have a kingdom in which they will share. It’s the question raised at Jesus’ trial.

But now, it’s different. Jesus has been ‘made’ Christ by God raising him from the dead and seating him at his side.[i] He is the King identified by David, to whom all nations will become subject.[ii] As Jesus has already said, all authority in heaven and earth is given to him.[iii] Or, as Paul says, he has been ‘declared to be the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead. Jesus Christ our Lord.’[iv]

From now on, the apostles will rarely call him Jesus without adding one or more of his titles. He holds a position that requires reverence. Before this, they have argued with him about whether he should die or not. They have asked for favours in his kingdom. But not now.

Their sins have been laid bare—painfully. The atonement for them has been offered—in the most graphic and final way possible. Victory over death, and the sins that led to this, have been plainly demonstrated. And they are forgiven.

So now, the disciples are ready to follow Jesus—humbly—into the victory he has won. And they are prepared for the battle that will follow.

The implications of this are enormous and they are life-changing.

God has poured all that he has promised to do for us and for our world into one person—his anointed King. He’s made lavish promises about what he will do through this one man.

But Jesus surprises everyone, including his own disciples, because he doesn’t do some of the things they’re expecting. No-one can guess what healing for the nations will look like until it happens.

Jesus deals with this, after his resurrection, when he talks to two disciples about what they expected a Messiah to be.[v] He explains what they should have expected ‘from all the scriptures’—not just from the triumphant ones. He says they are foolish not to have understood that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and then enter into his glory.

God’s anointed is not only God’s King but his Servant.[vi] He’s the suffering Servant announced by Isaiah.[vii]

So, the Christ acts gently, not stridently. He gathers people to the Lord, not just makes their life convenient.[viii] He suffers, and is able to help others who suffer.[ix] And, far from punishing his enemies, he wears their sins as his own. And then he declares that those who trust him are righteous.[x]

We can see Jesus acting with this kind of authority, even as he suffers for us on his cross.

He prays that his torturers will be forgiven.[xi] He tells a thief he will share in his kingdom.[xii] He announces that what he has been given to do is complete.[xiii] Then, he lays down his own life.[xiv] The officer in charge of the execution has never seen anything like this. He says that Jesus must be the Son of God![xv] This is effectively a confession that the sign above him is correct. Jesus is the King of the Jews. He’s Israel’s Messiah.

And now that Jesus is raised to exercise unfettered power, he acts with the same spirit that he showed on his cross. He remains the humble servant of our need.

The Apostle John sees visions of Christ as Ruler and King—fearful enough to make John fall down as though dead[xvi]. But then, in another vision, this same Ruler is weak enough to look like a lamb that has just been killed. Jesus will always remain the Lamb—even while he administers the movement of nations.

This is how Jesus Christ, from his throne in heaven, uses his authority. He changes people by the most intimate of loving, and by the costliest of actions. He removes the debris that prevents us from being truly human and recreates us as living children of God.

In fact, God’s plan is to unite everything in Jesus Christ.[xvii] Without his sufferings and our submission to him, we breed disunity. Only God’s Messiah, ruling from the heavens, can create peace.

But Christ works by persuading, not forcing. The parables he has told[xviii] have shown the disciples how this will work, and they now have the opportunity to be the agents of it happening.

So, Christ in in charge of everything.[xix] He determines the rise and fall of the nations.[xx] But he also enables each of his servants to have their place in his church. He—not us—is the one who will fill everything with his fullness.[xxi]

So, the church’s authority is not political or militaristic. It’s prophetic. We speak Christ’s word, and he, not us, breaks down hostility. And he draws people to himself.[xxii]

Jesus, the risen Christ, introduces his reign by giving his peace to the disciples. Then, he makes his regime public on Pentecost day by having Peter announce forgiveness of sins to those accountable for his execution. He calls us all to repentance, and to faith in him—faith in him and in nothing else.

This is radical. We’re called to leave behind all our good works—they were a charade. And all our bad works—they are forgiven. And all our complaints—we’ve never been treated so generously. And all our selfish ambitions—we’ve been transferred into his kingdom, and there’s no horizon larger than that. And to leave behind all our fears—Christ is for us; who can be against us.[xxiii]

So, from now on, we live for Christ.[xxiv] And this is not only appropriate, it’s possible. He is living for us.[xxv] And this love of Christ constrains us to live selflessly.[xxvi] In fact, we are all destined to be transformed into the likeness of Christ.

And we will see all God’s enemies defeated.[xxvii] It is folly for world leaders to over-rule Christ’s reign. The Lord laughs! He’s appointed his Son to be in charge, and to inherit the nations. Both leaders and people should rejoice in him, and be in awe of him.[xxviii]

If all this seems unreal, we need to remember what Jesus tells Nicodemus. We cannot see the kingdom of God, or enter it, until we are born again.[xxix] We need the gift of the Holy Spirit—to know Christ, and to be personally renewed. In this way, we are transferred into God’s kingdom[xxx] and begin to discover the powers of the age to come.[xxxi]

Confessing that Jesus is the Christ may get us into trouble with those who don’t like God being in charge of anything. But, as Paul says, compared with Christ, everything else is like something that can be thrown away. Christ has made us his own![xxxii] He’s met us in the depths of our need. And he’s continually leading us to the victory he has won.[xxxiii]

[i] Acts 2:36

[ii] Acts 2:33-35

[iii] Matt. 28:18

[iv] Rom. 1:4

[v] Luke 24:25-27

[vi] Acts 4:27-30

[vii] Isa. 42:1-4

[viii] Isa. 49:1-6

[ix] Isa. 50:4-9

[x] Isa. 52:13—53:12

[xi] Luke 23:34

[xii] Luke 23:39-43

[xiii] John 19:28-30

[xiv] John 19:30

[xv] Mark 15:39. He speaks out of his idolatry, but unwittingly expresses what is actually true.

[xvi] Rev. 1:9-20

[xvii] Eph. 1:7-10

[xviii] Matt. 13

[xix] Acts 23:11

[xx] Rev. 6:9-11

[xxi] Eph. 4:7-16

[xxii] Rom. 10:17; 2 Cor. 10:3-5

[xxiii] Rom. 8:31-39

[xxiv] Phil. 1:21

[xxv] Heb. 7:25

[xxvi] 2 Cor. 5:14

[xxvii] Psa 110:1, quoted by Peter in Acts 2:34

[xxviii] Psa. 2, quoted by Peter in Acts 4:25-26

[xxix] John 3:3-8

[xxx] Col. 1:13

[xxxi] Heb. 6:4-10

[xxxii] Phil. 3:12-14

[xxxiii] 2 Cor. 2:14-17

Jesus is Lord

The confession that Jesus Christ is Lord is perhaps the central truth that unites all Christians. And it’s the confession that lifts us from lostness to reconciliation with God.[i]

Clearly, we need to know what this means, and enjoy the truth of it and let others know that this is the path to life.

In his Pentecost sermon, Peter tells us that God has made Jesus Lord. He now sits beside God and is wholly in charge of God’s affairs. His enemies will become like a mere stool for resting his feet.[ii]

When Peter says this, all the opposition to Jesus being Leader and Saviour, and his being Israel’s Christ, have amounted to nothing. Jesus is alive. He’s leading, and saving and fulfilling God’s promises. And he’s Lord as well.

We all need to acknowledge the reality of this. The danger of not doing so is great. Our world is crooked. If we don’t let this Lord straighten us out, we will be shamed when God exposes what our life really is.[iii]

In fact, many of those who are the first to hear this announcement, repent of their unbelief and ungodliness.

Christ hasn’t been made Lord simply because he deserves it. He’s been made Lord so he can rescue us. If we confess that Jesus is Lord, and believe God has raised him from the dead, we will be saved.[iv]

And so, ‘Lord’ becomes one of the favourite ways in which the early church addresses this Jesus Christ who reigns. And they are glad to acknowledge themselves as his servants or bonded slaves.[v]

‘Other lords’ have been in control of us.[vi] But not anymore.[vii]

Clearly, the work of this Lord Jesus is wide and deep, but here are four words that may help us know and grow in walking with the Lord.

Authority

Our Lord Jesus has been given authority over us as his people, over God’s kingdom, and over everything.

In this world, it’s seems hard for us to accept that anyone has absolute power because authorities on earth tend to be so self-interested.[viii] But the authority of Jesus is gracious. And its purpose is to set us free from all that has stopped us knowing God and fulfilling our calling.

The great lie of Satan, that God is mean and that we should look after ourselves is here demonstrated to be false. God is good—not tardy.

We can now recognise the authority of our Lord for what it is. Love. Powerful love. Jesus has blazed a trail through every obstacle to our trusting and obeying God. And we know it! Like Paul, and like Peter, we’ve discovered that the Lord is kind.[ix]

So, our life now is for pleasing the Lord. It’s for doing his will. It’s for revealing what happens when we trust him.

Deity

The disciples of Jesus have been calling him ‘Lord’ for three years while he is with them. And their appreciation of how great he is, grows.

But during this time, he does and says things appropriate only to God—like forgive sins[x], expect honour equal to that given to the Father[xi], calls God his Father and says that the Father and he are one.[xii] He uses passages of Old Testament that apply to God and uses them of himself.[xiii] He insists on this publicly. And he’s crucified because of it.

If a human being claims to be God, they are either insane, or evil, or real. And it’s impossible to attribute the first two of these to the Jesus of the Gospels. We need to reckon with what he says.

But now, the resurrection awakens the disciples to more of what ‘Lord’ really means. He has sent his Holy Spirit to them—as he had promised. They are brought to life in a way they had never experienced before. These are things that God does.

Paul tells us about being awakened to know these things.[xiv] He is encountered by Jesus. He calls him ‘Lord’—but he doesn’t know who this ‘Lord’ is. Then he hears that it’s the Jesus he’s persecuting. And the strong-minded Paul asks for directions!

Paul wants us to know that the same Lord who confronted him now confronts us. We become blinded by the god of this world. He doesn’t want us to see ‘the glory of Christ, who is the image of God’.[xv]

But the preaching of the gospel is nothing less than the coming of Christ to us who hear. And when we receive his word, the Creator God, who first made light to shine, shines in our hearts with the knowledge of his glory. And the ‘face’ we see in this way is the face of Jesus Christ.

It’s true! The Jesus who has lived among us—humbly, kindly, sympathetically, strongly—is the face of God. All of God is present in his body.[xvi] And God has blessed us in this way with his presence because he is reconciling the world to himself!

So now, we know what our God is like—exactly. We know what he does and what he wants for us.

Recognising God in any shape or form is not something sinners like doing. So, when we confess that Jesus is Lord, it’s because the Holy Spirit has given us a new life.[xvii]

This is not a confession to make lightly. As Paul later says, ‘Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness’: he was manifested in the flesh…’.[xviii]

Belonging

The apostles quite often talk about Jesus as ‘our Lord’ or ‘my Lord’.[xix] They don’t mean that they own him. Rather, they are owned by him[xx]. He pays a high price to have us as his own.

Because of this bond, the whole Christian community is held together.[xxi] And we are kept from trying to be little lords of others by knowing that each believer belongs to the Lord and not to us.[xxii] Our place is to walk humbly before the world’s one Lord.

There are similarities between saying ‘Jesus is our Lord’ and saying ‘the Lord is my Shepherd’. The shepherding of Israel’s covenant Lord is now being done by Jesus.[xxiii]

How can we navigate all that happens in this life apart from the truth that our Lord knows us, leads us and talks to us? How can we expect to live well without being led by him in paths of righteousness? How can we be secure in dark valleys unless we know he is with us?

Rather, because we now know ‘the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord’, we are persuaded that nothing will be able to separate us from this.[xxiv]

Battling

Not long after the apostles announce that Jesus is Lord, hostility erupts in Jerusalem. But they regard it a privilege to suffer for him.[xxv] Paul says he doesn’t reckon his safety of great importance, so long as he can finish the job given to him by the Lord Jesus.[xxvi]

Peter tells us to honour Christ the Lord as holy, always being ready to share with others the reason for the hope we have—even if we suffer for it.[xxvii]

The promise in David’ psalm concerning Jesus sitting at God’s right hand, continues by saying, ‘Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power’.[xxviii]

When we see Jesus reigning, and know him as God, and are embraced by his loving, we will gladly join the many who want to share in the battle, and to have a share in his victory.

There is a day coming when every person born on this earth will acknowledge that Jesus is Lord. Believers will do so with worship and gladness. But none will be able to deny that it is true.[xxix]

[i] Rom. 10:9

[ii] Acts 2:32-35

[iii] Acts 2:40

[iv] Rom. 10:9-11

[v] Acts 4:29

[vi] Isa. 26:13

[vii] Col. 2:13-15

[viii] Luke 22:24-30

[ix] 1 Pet. 2:3

[x] Mark 2:5-7

[xi] John 5:23

[xii] John 5:18; 10:30-33. This clarified in v. 38.

[xiii] For example John 8:58, effectively quoting Isa. 43:10.

[xiv] Acts 22:6-11

[xv] 2 Cor. 4:4-6

[xvi] Col. 1:19-20

[xvii] 1 Cor. 12:3

[xviii] 1 Tim. 3:16; also Col. 2:2-3

[xix] In fact, just less than one in five references to Jesus as Lord are preceded by ‘our’. For example, see Acts 15:26; 20:21; Rom. 1:4; 4:24; 5:1; 6:23; 7:25; 8:39; 15:6, 30; 16:20, 24.

[xx] 1 Cor. 6:19-20

[xxi] 1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 4:3-6

[xxii] Rom. 14:4-9

[xxiii] John 10:10-15 with Psalm 23

[xxiv] Rom. 8:39

[xxv] Acts 5:41

[xxvi] Acts 20:24

[xxvii] 1 Pet. 3:15

[xxviii] Psa. 110:3

[xxix] Phil. 2:10-11

Jesus—Son of God

It’s good for us that we know the names and titles given to Jesus. They help us to know him, rely on him and worship him.

As we’ve seen, those who believe in Jesus know him as Leader and Saviour, they cherish him as the Christ who fulfills all God’s promises, and they honour him as their Lord. When the apostles speak of Jesus, they usually include one or more of these titles.

But Jesus is also the Son of God. As a title, it doesn’t appear in the New Testament as often as those above, but it’s always used in significant ways. We could say that calling Jesus ‘Son of God’ takes us to the heart of who he is.

But first, it’s helpful to know that this way of talking about Jesus has a history. Adam has been referred to as God’s son.[i] Then, God calls Israel his son.[ii] And the Messiah God promises to send is also identified as God’s son[iii].

So, when Jesus comes among us as the Son of God, he is all that an Adam should be—a true human being. He is all that God’s people should be—living by the word of God.[iv] And he accomplishes all that God has promised his Messiah will do.

But for Jesus, ‘Son of God’ is not just a title. It’s a relationship. It’s who he is.[v] God and Jesus are Father and Son—from eternity and to eternity. He doesn’t become God’s Son when he steps into our history.

As we would expect, it’s Jesus who tells us most about this.[vi]

When he’s only twelve, he expects his parents to find him in the house of his Father—God.[vii] This is natural for him. Mary must remember the story of his birth. She knows that her husband isn’t the father. An angel has told her that her child will be ‘holy, the Son of the Most High’, or, ‘the Son of God’.[viii]

When Jesus is baptized, God speaks to him audibly. ‘You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased’.[ix] This identifies Jesus as the coming King of Psalm 2. But Jesus hears his Father acknowledge him, warmly and publicly.

All of the known prayers of Jesus (except one he prays from his cross) are addressed to God as his Father. For example, he rejoices when his disciples report on their preaching tour.[x] And he explains that no-one really knows who he is—except his Father. That’s intimacy. And, apart from him, no-one knows his Father either—unless the Son chooses to reveal him to them.

Jesus calling God his Father is very surprising to those who hear him. No-one else is doing that. In fact, the Jews find it offensive. He’s claiming to be equal with God.[xi]

John writes his whole Gospel to show that ‘Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God’.[xii] And he begins his book with with an explanation of what ‘Son’ means.[xiii]

He is the Word of God—that is, God speaking and acting and revealing himself. He is God. All creation comes into being through him. He is the life and light that we all need.

And now, this Son of God has become flesh. He’s a human being.

None of us have seen God. But this Son of God is side by side with his Father God—intimately! And he’s revealing God. It’s through him that we know that the God of all the earth is Father, and Son. And later, that he’s Spirit too. God is a community of persons.

Jesus demonstrates what Son of God means by the way he lives, and so becomes a light shining into our dark places.

For example, he doesn’t need the approval of others. He doesn’t depend on the protection of the state. He is free to place others before himself—even in the most extreme of situations. He does this because he lives and loves in the certainty of his Father’s love.

All of us, by nature, have suspicions about God, want to avoid him and even get rid of him. Our lives become confined to what we can see and do. But God sends his Son among us to set the record straight. He’s a perfect representation of his Father[xiv]—full of grace and truth.

All that we’ve looked at here is a sample of what God wants to show us. We’ll spend our whole life discovering who this Son of God is—and all of eternity too.

And now, among the various ways that Jesus is spoken of as Son of God, here are two that stand out.

First, God’s Son has come to be an offering for sin

When Jesus talks to Nicodemus, he likens himself to the image of a snake on a pole that Moses erected. People could look at this and be healed of their snake bites.[xv] It’s a vivid story. And Jesus says he also will be lifted up on a pole so people will have a place to look and be saved.[xvi]

John explains this to us. Jesus is the Father’s only and beloved Son. But God so loves the world that he sends this Son for us, so that we will not perish.[xvii]

The Son of God is not just on our planet to give us advice. We’re lost. We’re rebels. We’re dead. We need a rebirth![xviii]

Then, moving on to the teaching of the apostles, Paul, on several occasions, links Jesus being Son of God with him being the offering for our sin.

We are reconciled to God by the death of his Son.[xix] God sends his own Son among us, sinless, but wholly vulnerable to the ravages of what sin can do to him—and does do to him.[xx]

God condemns sin—all of it, while his Son is bearing those sins. And we who trust him are washed clean![xxi]

So, Paul now chooses to live by faith in the Son of God who loves us and gives himself up for us.[xxii]

Very wonderfully, God’s Son has broken into our selfish world to show us what God is really like. And to show us what life is really about. Being Son of God is all about him being full of grace and truth.[xxiii] It’s about turning enemies into friends.

Second, the Son of God creates a fellowship with God that we can share

Like parents who encompass their children in the love they have for each other, God’s Son comes to tell us what life in the divine family is like.

Jesus describes this union as being in each other. It’s love language and deeply personal. Being ‘in’ another person is being focused on them rather than being focused on ourselves.[xxiv]

Jesus has been teaching and demonstrating this life for us. He’s the way, the truth and the life of his Father. In other words, he’s wanting us to recognise the Father in the way he goes about being the Son.[xxv] And he’s wanting us to come into the fellowship in which he lives.

A little later, Jesus tells us that the Spirit and he and the Father will come and reside in the apostles who have come to love him and obey him.[xxvi] And he includes us all when he says, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him’.[xxvii]

The truth of our sharing in the relationship of Father and Son needs to work its way through all of the duties and relationships we have. Jesus is insistent that we love one another. In the hours before his arrest and trial, he mentions it nine times.[xxviii]

So, being a Christian is a life of fellowship with God’s Son.[xxix] And God’s sends the Spirit of his Son into our hearts so that we can say ‘Father’[xxx]—with the same intimacy Jesus would have used in Aramaic (abba).

Clearly, we need to grow and mature in this new life we share with the Son of God. We are members of God’s family—his church, and by coming to know the Son of God fully, we grow up to maturity, together.[xxxi]

If God doesn’t tell us what it means to be human beings, we’re left with theories and chance. It’s a bleak landscape. We can divert ourselves for a while, but in the end, it’s all for nothing.

But Jesus says, ‘If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’[xxxii] Human life without the Son of God becomes ridiculous. We’re walking in the dark. Worse than that! We’re being led around—unwittingly—by Satan!

The truth of Jesus being the Son of God is not an idea to implement. It’s a power to submit to. God has raised Jesus from the dead to proclaim to everyone that this is his Son. And when we trust this wonderful and mighty Son of God, we are transferred from the tyranny of darkness to the kingdom of the Son he loves.[xxxiii]

Clearly, we need to turn away from making up an identity of our own. The Son of God has come to our planet. By the announcement of his truth, he comes to us. He gives us understanding so that we may know him. And live in him.[xxxiv] This is the reality for which we are all made. And it is the privilege to which we are called.[xxxv]

[i] Gen. 5:1 with 5:3. Also, the acknowledgement of Jesus as God’s Son is followed by a genealogy that finishes with Adam as son of God (Luke 3:22-28).

[ii] Exod. 4:22-23; Jer. 31:9

[iii] Psa. 2:7

[iv] Notice the way that Jesus ‘relives’ Israel’s journey in the wilderness, and quotes the commands given to Israel at that time in his own time of testing (Matt. 4:1-11).

[v] Some believe that Jesus having a ‘Father’ is a metaphorical way of speaking. Sons, they say, are born, and Jesus could not be God if he was born. But reasoning from our experience doesn’t work. God is not like us. We are like him. So, God has a Son—eternally. We reflect that and have children—in time.

[vi] Over 200 verses in our Gospels mention the Father and the Son, over half of them in John’s Gospel.

[vii] Luke 3:49

[viii] Luke 1:31-35

[ix] John 3:22

[x] Luke 10:21-22

[xi] John 5:18

[xii] John 20:31

[xiii] John 1:1-18

[xiv] Also Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:2-3

[xv] Num. 21:5-9

[xvi] John 3:13-15

[xvii] John 3:14-18; also 1 John 4:10

[xviii] John 3:5-8

[xix] Rom. 5:10

[xx] Rom. 8:3

[xxi] 1 John 1:7; 2:2

[xxii] Gal. 2:20

[xxiii] John 1:14

[xxiv] John 14:16-26

[xxv] John 14:6-9

[xxvi] John 14:17

[xxvii] John 14:23

[xxviii] John 14-16

[xxix] 1 Cor. 1:9

[xxx] Gal. 4:6

[xxxi] Eph. 4:13

[xxxii] John 8:31-38

[xxxiii] Col. 1:14

[xxxiv] 1 John 5:20

[xxxv] 1 Cor. 1:9